August 11, 2012 12:03 AM CDTAugust 11, 2012 10:16 AM CDTAn end to the glare? Nasher, Museum Tower may be nearing a solution

An end to the glare? Nasher, Museum Tower may be nearing a solution

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Brad Loper/Staff Photographer

Light reflected off Museum Tower just outside the Nasher Sculpture Center this week. Mayor Mike Rawlings has summoned officials with the Nasher and the tower to his office after Monday's City Council meeting to discuss possible solutions.

Architects, engineers and consultants working for the Nasher Sculpture Center and Museum Tower, its 42-story neighbor in the Dallas Arts District, may be nearing a solution to a yearlong crisis caused by glare from the tower.

Only two meetings have occurred in concert with Dallas attorney Tom Luce, whom Mayor Mike Rawlings appointed as a facilitator to broker a solution to a problem the Nasher says is damaging its galleries. But much has occurred behind the scenes, and late Friday, city officials and both sides spoke out in response to questions.

Rawlings has summoned the two sides to his office after Monday’s City Council meeting to discuss possible solutions, his chief of staff, Paula Blackmon, said Friday.

“While the group should speak for themselves,” Rawlings said in a prepared statement, “they have worked hard examining all possible options. This problem will be resolved keeping the integrity of the world-class sculpture museum we have. I believe the answer is near at hand.”

Luce sounded equally upbeat. “I remain optimistic that we’re going to get this solved in the near future,” he said.

Luce, who had requested a nonbinding media blackout when the talks began, declined to elaborate. But others in the Dallas arts community and within business, real estate and architectural circles have begun to share what they perceive as the seeds of a settlement.

Technicians on both sides are weighing the pros and cons of a mechanical louvered system applied to Museum Tower that would shield the Nasher from the glare that museum officials first complained about last September.

They contend that sunlight directed from the highly reflective glass on the tower exterior is destroying the outdoor garden and compromising indoor galleries. The dispute has drawn national attention.

Estimates for the potential fix hover between $10 million and $15 million but could climb as high as $20 million. Phase 1 of the negotiations is focused on whether it will work, not who will pay for it, so there still could be substantial disagreement.

Richard Tettamant, administrator of the Dallas Police & Fire Pension System, which owns the $200 million luxury condo tower that’s scheduled for completion by the end of the year, acknowledged in a statement Friday that a louvered system is one of more than 20 concepts studied in depth.

However, he said, the tower’s experts still think that the “most complete and cost-effective solution” involves recalibration of the small cones on the Nasher’s roof that allow indirect sunlight into the galleries.

Months ago, Tettamant said, Museum Tower committed to pay for the recalibration of the roof and still stands behind that offer.

“Meanwhile,” he said, “we’re leaving no stone unturned as we continue to investigate the most advanced technology, engineering and materials in the world.”

The Nasher pushed back against Tettamant late Friday.

“The Nasher Sculpture Center continues to participate in meetings with Museum Tower to find a solution that entirely eliminates the damage caused to our indoor and outdoor galleries by reflections from their building,” said its director, Jeremy Strick, in a prepared statement.

“Unfortunately, today,” Strick said, “Museum Tower released misleading and erroneous information on the nature of and solutions to the problem.

While we would like to represent our point of view at this time and provide more accurate information, we will continue to abide by the blackout and make a public statement once there is a resolution agreed to by all parties.”

The possible solution involving louvers is reportedly effective on a building in Germany, though that structure is barely half the height of Museum Tower. Weight and wind are key concerns, and potential issues related to them increase with height.

According to a 1998 covenant that expired in 2008, exterior glass on any future building was supposed to be limited to a reflectivity of 15 percent. Strick said in March that the tower now carries a reflectivity of more than 44 percent.

More evidence that the situation is creating hard feelings surfaced Thursday, when Nasher officials installed a new sign in front of what used to be James Turrell’s Tending, (Blue) in the rear of the Nasher garden.

“Because a clear view of the sky from the interior of Tending, (Blue) is now obstructed by Museum Tower, the artist, James Turrell, has declared the work destroyed,” reads the sign. “Turrell has created a new design for a skyspace on this site, which will eliminate Museum Tower from the viewer’s line of sight. The Nasher Sculpture Center hopes to execute this new design in the future.”

Asked to comment, Nasher spokeswoman Kristen Gibbins issued a statement: “We are simply adhering to the request of the artist.”

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